In-State or Outside for surgery??

I'm at the very beginning of the process, still deciding if i want surgery or not and if so which type (subjects for other posts!). I'm wondering if I do want to have the surgery should I stay in state or go outside. I will certainly go outside of Fairbanks for ANY surgery but IF my insurance pays to fly outside for surgery I'm wondering if I might get better care with someplace like Alvarado in California. Of course thats a BIG if. After reading some of the comments regarding Alaskan doctors I starting to feel like Outside might be better. I have considered the other factors like post op care and having family near during surgery and post op and am still leaning toward going Outside. Any thoughts?? Anyone here gone Outside instead of doing it in-state?

I can tell you that I was headed towards Alvarado until I found out my insurance had a cap and Alvarado was going to be an additional $20,000 - 25,000 on top of my out of pocket expenses of flying to San Diego and getting a room. I am 10 days post op and feel wonderful. I am actually glad it turned toward out this way. the first few days home where a little tiresome. I truely don't know how I could have done it in a hotel room by myself. But each day I get stronger and more energy. I am up to about 2 1 hour walks a day.  I just feel that if I was in San Diego during this time I would have been more worried about what was going on up here than myself. This way I get to see my family everyday and they understand when I feel tired or can't lift items. The surgery went fine at Providence. I was in the hospital for 2 days and got to go home. I know that Providence just got their accedidation for bariatrics. Everything I had was "normal" size. The staff was compassioniate. Dr Searles really enjoys doing his work. I wish you the best of luck in your journey.

i just started all this...i am now getting all pre-op labs and other stuff done. i fly from fairbanks to anchorage. i see Dr. Searles. he is not a talker and gets right to the point. is office staff is very nice and helpful. i did not go to Dr. Todd because he requires way to much before and after care for me. i am getting the band and just do not have the time for all the travel that he would want. i really like searles.

Thanks for the replies.  I think you're right, insurance may make the decision for me. I 'm not  going to pay that much just to go outside. I'm sure I be back frequently asking more questions!!

I chose to go to alverado....because of my past experience with the medical up here...i researched til i found someone i was comfortable with....she is great, experienced and down to earth...my insurance coveres all but 3500 of her fee....she's not on my provider list, however i will deal with that later with the insurance co....since there are so few choices here in alaska there is sometimes the option that the insurance will pay at least a provider rate, maybe not preferred but at least a provider...but you have to ask for it  and sometimes write a letter based on what the situation is. I investigated all the avail doctors here and anchorage and found them to be lacking in the experience i preferred...some were specialists in other field of medicine and then took the "weekendwarrior course" in bariatrics.....some hadnt practiced it in years and werent up to date I was more than willing to cough up the extra bucks to have the top woman surgeon in the laprny do my surgery....i talked with her over the phone-great experience, talked when she had her lecture, very imformative...talked to several of her patients...all healthy and happy and bragging about her! my surgery will be in june sometime towards the end, as i needed extra testing and dr ellner and my cardiologist had to figure out how to deal with my aspirin... teri

I have Tricare, so my PCM at Elmendorf refferred me to Dr. Todd.   I can honestly say that my experience was outstanding.  There were plenty of hoops to jump thru, mostly because of Tricare, but Dr Todd and his staff were very easy to work with.    My surgery was at Alaska Regional and again the care was outstanding.    Good luck with your surgery, and the most important thing is that you are comfortable with the doctor and the process.

Well I got a note back from the insurance person at Alvarado stating my insurance should cover it but I need to send the 5-year medical history, get the psych eval, talk to their NUT, and send proof of 6-month Dr. supervised diet. I can get this done fairly quickly. What I'm really waiting to hear is what the actual price and out-of-pocket will be and they won't know that until after I'm approved for surgery. In her email she did say that Dr. Ellner is not on their list and she will require $1500 payment before the surgery. I post as I hear more unless the psyc eval turns up more than I want to know!!

Go to Julie Ellner!!!  She is worth every penny!!!!!

Greetings! I'm in the same boat.  Dr.Searles or Dr. Wittgrove.  Searles is attractive because of the close proximity to where I live, but unattractive due to his lack of aftercare, or so I hear.  Is aftercare something your PCP can take care of for the most part?  That plus this forum as an aftercare tool?  Wouldn't Dr. Searles be available for emergencies?  Does any one know if Dr. Searles does the RNY laparoscopic or open?  I also hear the Searles requires a 6 mth medically supervised diet, even if your insurance doesn't.  Is this true?  bummer if it is. And Dr. Wittgrove, well IS Dr. Wittgrove.  I hear he is the BEST!!  His aftercare would only consist of phone calls and periodic visits to Alaska for rechecks.  But if IS AFTERCARE.  But he has the added expenses of travel and lodging to San Diego.  Although there are worse places to have to recover in than San Diego!!!  I don't know if my insurance will require a higher copayment or not  But I know he does laparoscopic, which I prefer.  I only want the little scars and not the one big one.  I can tattoo little flowers around the lap scars.  sislly, but something I look forward to doing. So, any opinions from you guys would be appreciated! I am a light weight, 5'1", 192lbs  53yrs old...living in Soldotna Thanks!! Peace and Smiles! CCEE

I can answer a few of your questions about Doc Searles.  He DOES do Lap RNY and band and he has superb teqnique...in fact if your insurance covers it he can even use the DaVinci robot to do the surgery, super cool!  He used to be Doc Todds partner and has plenty of experience with RNY though he is "newer" to the Band.  I haven't had any problems though, and he hits the port every time I need a fill.  He did NOT require a 6 month diet for myself or the other people I have refered out to him.  I had my initial consult on Jan 16th and was banded on Mar 20, would have been sooner but I had trouble getting all of my pre-op tests done here in Fairbanks.  I was also a "lightweight" (sure didn't feel like it, lol!!)  I do know that he doesn't give you an easy time if your BMI is under 40 though, even for the band.  He doesn't have much of and aftercare program for us bandsters, I'm not sure about RNY.  The staff is very helpful and always willing to answer questions when I call.  If they can not answer he is prompt to call back with an answer.   Kari